Measurement in a Multi-Ethnic Society

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Abstract
Disparities among “priority” populations (defined here to include members of racial, ethnic, and other sociodemographic groups) have been well documented in terms of access to health and mental health services as well as delivery of care and medical procedures.1–4 Healthcare decisions are often made based on assessments of the health status of individuals; however, as illustrated in a recent volume of reviews,5 evidence of the cultural equivalence of health-related measures is sparse. The major goal of this special issue is to provide state-of-the-art overviews of both qualitative and quantitative methods that can be used to examine measurement equivalence. Several authors in the qualitative section of this special issue point out that most measures have been developed in a “monocultural context” so that concepts and constructs may not be the same when applied to other cultures. There are several (hierarchical) steps in the examination of measurement equivalence across individuals, particularly those who differ in terms of background characteristics. These include conceptual equivalence (the meaning of constructs and items) and measurement invariance (the properties of items). The methods of factor analyses and differential item functioning (DIF) are 2 quantitative ways that items can be evaluated for cultural equivalence. Some DIF methods are related to factor analytic methods for examination of measurement invariance. The procedures for examining equivalence involve the use of both qualitative and quantitative methods often in an iterative fashion. Contained within this special issue are 2 major sections: qualitative and quantitative. The qualitative section begins with an overview6 followed by an article related to measuring and deconstructing race.7 An article on qualitative methods describes frameworks for crosscultural measurement and issues of cultural sensitivity and conceptual adequacy8 followed by an article describing applications of qualitative methods, including illustrations of interaction analyses, cognitive interviewing, and the use of random probes.9 The section concludes with a discussion of the limits of quantitative methods10 followed by a commentary on the use of qualitative methods to improve quantitative measures.11 Similarly, the quantitative section begins with an overview12 followed by 2 articles relating to classical and item response theory (IRT) methods for developing measures.13,14 Two articles relating to measurement and factorial invariance15,16 are followed by an overview17 and 5 articles illustrating different methods for examination of DIF.18–22 These articles are followed by 3 commentaries23–25 and a summary article describing advantages and disadvantages of different approaches to examining measurement invariance.26 The special issue ends with a discussion of item banking and computerized adaptive testing.27,28 Contributors to this volume are internationally noted experts in health disparities research and/or measurement methods and statistics. Some developed the methods described in this special issue. Many different disciplines, and therefore multiple viewpoints and perspectives, are represented in the work presented in this special issue.